And...

For my West Coast friends who wonder what the hell I'm doing typing entries at 1:47am...

It's the price of parenthood. Babies sleep when they wanna, cry for no reason at all (maybe they're trying out noises they like!) and go thru an un-Godly amount of diapers between 10pm and 5am.

My almost three month old, second born girl (codenamed lil Punkin') has just closed her eyes after spending nearly an hour cooing and smiling at me as I waited for her to fall asleep. The Kraut-compound is rather small and I can't have lil Punkin' waking her big sister or her exhausted Mama.

Then I'd have much bigger problems.

She'd scream if I moved her: through trial and error the only thing that works is waiting by the kitchen exhaust fan - guess that white noise can't be beat!

But I am.

Beat, that is...

Out with the old...

In with the new.

Everyone always says spring is so damn great- a time for renewal, spring cleaning, blah blah blah. I've always loved fall more. And I've always found that the Labour Day weekend is a better divider between old and new. So how freaking weird is it that I ended my old job on Friday and will start my new job on Tuesday?

A clean break. A fresh start. A shorter drive.

-----

My old co-workers were quite good to me, staging a "mini-retirement" shindig at lunch complete with cheap gold watch and company golf shirt. Because we're they're part of the government and the whole department was there, alcohol was NOT forthcoming (but was at the "unofficial" goodbye held two days previous) but a good time was had by most.

We'll miss each other.

Not that much, mind you. I mean, they didn't renew my contract, did they?

C'mon you Apes! You wanna live forever?

You belong in Starship Troopers. Your idea of a
good time is bouncing across an alien
battlefield blasting the foes of humanity into
extinction.


Which Heinlein Book Should You Have Been A Character In?
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via (who else?) Ghost of a Flea

Good. Very Good.

Spammer ducks for cover as details published on web

100 MILLION...

Good. Very good.

And your little dog, too...

Just slightly ahead of my time...

via Rue and the Flea

Demons

Autistic boy's death at church ruled homicide

Just plain sad.

No you fundamentalist idiot. The boy had autism.

Autism.

Look it up.

Yes, and your years of medical training are from which recognized institution? Oh, sorry no. You're one of those slack-jawed yokels who think every single issue on THE PLANET is covered somewhere in that holy book of yours...

How 'bout never you murdering bastard.

from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

An adult man sits on a child's chest for two freakin' hours.

Because mopping floors and cleaning toilets is perfect training for exorcism rituals. At least he could clean up the mess afterwards.

Poor little guy. And of course everyone will feel sympathy for his mother.

The mother that held him down as this was done to him...

-----

When I first started writing this, I had a whole fundamentalist moron rant ready to go. As I got more and more into the articles my fire died and I just feel sad; sad that there is so much of this going on, that the light of reason and logic, that actual thought processes seem totally absent from these people.

That they shut off their minds to blindly follow...and that they feel superior for it.

-----

I knew a few fundamentalists a long time ago. Neighbours - friends of my parents...Everything with them was "God's will."

Weeds in the grass: God's doing.

Starving children in the third world: Part of God's plan.

Pimples on my face at 12: God's will.

It was amazing how little thinking these people had to do in a day.

When the husband got in a car accident (his fault through gross negligence) and killed a cyclist and some passengers in a second car it was God's will. The man felt no guilt that his inability to do a simple lane change had caused death and destruction and had taken away the future of so many people. His wife was happy because the Lord had spared him in His infinite mercy.

Because God had a plan, you see. And if you didn't see it, well that was your problem.

-----

They'd pray for me, they said.

I told them not to bother. I didn't want the likes of them helping or praying for me.

They told me I'd roast in Hell.

I said that if Heaven was reserved for them and people like them, I'd rather do my time in Hell thank you very much.

After they left in a huff, my mother said with a smile on her face that she'd be happy to join me.

New Paradigm

Next time someone tells me to "think outside the box" at work I'm going to "engage a new paradigm" by beating them to death with their own severed limbs (of course, I'll have to sever those limbs first.)

Stupid management section of the bookstore, foisting stupid buzzwords on brain-dead middle management. Bark Seals! BARK!

Guess I'll have to "de-prioritize my daily action-items" to make room for some random ultra-violence.

Last Week!

Tomorrow is the last Monday at my old job.

Followed by the last Tuesday, then the last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Engage slack-ass mode...

Time travel

Me, on the phone: "Hey Neil."

Neil's one of my old bosses at Kraut Corp. (ancient), whom I haven't worked for in three years...

Neil: "Hi what's up?"
Me: "Someone's calling to check up on my references for my new job. I gave them your name."
Neil: "Standard lies?"
Me: "No, no, the truth! I'm the greatest employee of all time. You'd pay them to get me back."
Neil: "OK...Do you know? Your name came up the other day."
Me: "Oh"
Neil: "Yeah, Rob left the other day and somebody mentioned you used to do his job..."
Me: "Really?" [nervous tightening in my throat]
Neil: "But you wouldn't want to come back here anyway..."
Me: "I wouldn't."
Neil: [whispering] "Same fucking idiots are in charge..."

-----

To prevent any thoughts of retreat Cortez burned his ships. That way there was no thought of going back...

-----

I decided to call one of my usual informants.

Me: "Hey 'lizabeth."
Elizabeth: "Ray! How're you?...OH! Let me close my door."
Elizabeth: "Weirdest thing, you calling. Rob's left and I was just thinking of you."
Me: "Really?"
Elizabeth: "You could do his job with your eyes closed...You should call Mark."

-----

Would I want to go back? When I left I WAS bored and tired of dealing with the new idiots on the management team that understood NOTHING about what I told them about how things worked, yet were paid twice what I was making.

I had been shoe-horned into a corner of the organization that there was no coming out of without a long desperated struggle to show these LOSERS how to fix problems that were right in front of their faces, that they didn't even see.

But they paid me a shitload of money to do it...and even though I have a job to go to, things being what they are I could use a shitload of money right now, no matter the boredom and idiocy of the organization.

-----

Me: "Mark, it's Ray _____ here."
Mark: "Ray! How are you? Funny you should be calling."
Me: "Well a nameless birdy told me that one of your analysts left...and my current contract with Kraut Corp is up on the 29th..."
Mark: "Well, I'm on vacation for the next two weeks...
Mark: "And we're looking at 're-engineering' the position."
Mark: "And we'll probably go through a headhunter to make sure we've got the right person..."
Mark: "And we'll probably have to determine if we even NEED this position..."

[whispering in my head] Same fucking idiots are in charge...

Me: "Sure, I understand. Who was it I should send my resume to again?"

-----

They wouldn't see a solution if it jumped up and punched them in the face- which I probably would've attempted if this hadn't been on the phone. They haven't changed a bit.

But I have.

There ain't no going back...

Burning Closer...

My hometown is on fire.

-----

Though I only lived there from 1980-87 and the summers of 1988 and 1989, I still remember Kelowna as my hometown.

Burnt

Loyal Kraut-friend Chris, whom I have known from the old days in British Columbia mailed me this about the fires near Kelowna:

The park was a beautiful, wild place that was difficult to get to (no good roads) and was best accessible via boat. I've only been there once or twice in my lifetime.

And now it's gone.

Unemployment deferred

Kraut Corp (old) is ending its relationship with me on August 29th, 2003.

Kraut Corp (new) is beginning our beautiful friendship September 2nd, 2003.

I get a long weekend before I start my new job. Unemployment has been fended off!

HA!

-----

I'm in a beer commercial mood: "Here's to good friends! Tonight is kind of special...Tonight, let it be ________________"

Finish the song.

Whining

I love how a good crisis brings out the self-righteous in all their glory. How long 'til torchlit mobs roam the streets, smashing the evil boxes of the world with names like Lennox and Carrier?

If I hear one more call in radio show a with sanctimonious host and whiny guests that rat out their neighbours: "ooooooo, he was running his air conditioner all night. I saw her doing LAUNDRY! I saw him shaving with an ELECTRIC RAZOR!" -- I'm going to scream!

-----

We all should do our part. But there will be others who choose to use more. Why? Because it's there, damnit! Until the cost to that individual is prohibitive (ie. hit them HARD in their bank account!) some people won't care about individual consumption.

Unless the RCMP is forming a Gestapo department stop spying and whining about your neighbours!

It's sickening.

And the subtext to every comment is that the caller is better than the neighbour they're complaining about because they're sacrificing SO MUCH!

-- from Weird Al Yankovic's Amish Paradise

Hitchin' up the buggy, churnin' lots of butter
Raised a barn on Monday, soon I'll raise another
Think you're really rightous? Think you're pure in heart?
Well, I know I'm a million times as humble as thou art
I'm the pious guy the little Amlettes wanna be like
On my knees day and night scorin' points for the afterlife
So don't be vain and don't be whiny
Or else, my brother, I might just have to get medieval on your heinie

Pointless Actions

You know...

I think it would've been better for morale if Kraut Corp (old) had just lined up all contract employees with less than two weeks remaining in their contracts against a wall and had them shot handed them a cheque for their two weeks' and shown them the door.

But oh no, they're going to make us ALL stick it out to the last minute with every boring "dig a hole, fill the hole" assignment they can think of.

I'm a predator. Set me loose on something with some meat on it for God's sake!

I'm becoming increasingly bored and violent and destructive anti-social.

There are at least three other employees like myself who are history as of the 29th. I believe there's a plot a brewing!

Interview 3 Debrief

Well, this could be it. I finally decided to pony up for the tolls on the 407ETR on the way to the third interview:

Elapsed time to drive to interview: 15 minutes
Distance to interview: 30 kilometres (about 19 miles for the 'mericans reading this)
Average speed of transit: 120 KPH/75 MPH

I think I could like this commute.

-----

The interview went swimmingly.

I like them. I think they like me. I'm going to leave it at that for now.

Don't want to jinx it.

And I thought I was colder...

You're Brazil!

You're athletic, charming, and probably a good dancer.
 Unfortunatley, you don't really mind chopping down the rain forest, and you probably consider homeless people expendable in certain circumstances.  Of course, your personality is so diverse that it's hard to track down exactly what you're like.  You definitely like Pele, the World Cup, and shouting "gooooal" at the top of your lungs.
Take the Country Quiz at the Blue Pyramid

via Rue and the Flea

Thoughts on Power

Electrical power, that is...

Normally I'm a big fan of privatising things because of my inate free market beliefs- but this fun little experiment with medievalism (ie the blackout) has made me think this through.

Everyone is saying that the free market reforms (ie. privatisation) is at fault here. They're partly right.

The real question is what are the goals of the power producers that operate on the North American power grid? This isn't such an easy question after first glance.

-----

Any private enterprise's goals are driven by profit. At its best, the capitalist system tries to maximize profits by being as efficient as possible.

Waste is to be avoided. Overcapacity is to be avoided. Customer Service goals are set so a firm does not waste resources by having too much inventory on hand. If a firm carries too much inventory, the costs to store this inventory hit the bottom line and reduce profit.

On the other hand, if a firm doesn't carry enough inventory a customer with cash in hand may have to go elsewhere when the firm runs out of product and that lost sale reduces profit.

So a lot of time, money and effort is expended on finding the right balance between, demand supply and inventory, to find the theoretical "best" production rate.

What's this got to do with the grid and blackouts?

Well, if private firms are running it, the incentive is to reduce overcapacity/inventory (excess generating capacity) and try to figure out the optimal generation rate. Any shortfalls will be solved by going to other suppliers and purchasing excess electrical capacity elsewhere when there own supply is tight. The most efficient firms will set up to slightly underproduce, and then wait for market dips to purchase the energy they need to fill the gap from those less efficient firms that are overproducing.

Purchasing energy elsewhere requires easy transmission between power grids, hence hooking everyone into ONE BIG GRID.

Now here's the messy part. In order to compete with other producers (because the whole deal with market forces is that competition keeps prices lower) ALL firms on the grid must behave the same way (ie underproduce and pick up the difference from the less efficient producers with excess capacity.) The less efficient over-capacity firms either have to become more efficient, or they start losing money and die off. If the system runs according to theory everyone becomes more efficient.

If everyone is behaving the same way, THE WHOLE GRID IS UNDERPRODUCING and every plant is running close to capacity. Eventually one part will break and the result will be last Thursday at 4:11pm Eastern Time.

This is a result of everyone behaving consistent with market forces. And that's why market forces need to be examined to see if they are the best possible managers of the nation's power supply...

-----

So the question is what do you want? You there, the consumer...

The cheapest possible electricity rate. Or total reliability (with the overcapacity and WASTE that requires)?

Because you ain't getting both.

Mail Bag

A reader named feste left the comment below in my entry. Hey feste, thanks for stopping by and commenting. All comments are welcome even if I don't personally agree with them. I noted some points in your post that I'll refute or expand upon.

His complete comment was as below:

1) Relentless criticism of Canada? No. Relentless criticism of the Liberal Government that has ZERO opposition and has screwed up left right and centre without being called on it? Yes. Hatred of the shrill Sheila Copps? Yes. Pissed off at the one party system we've got in Canada right now? Yes. I WANT A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE. That is not hatred of Canada as an institution because you say it is.

2) Constant praise of the U.S.? There are some, no many things that I think the U.S. does better than we do. And I'll point them out when I see fit. That's my right for living in a great, free nation like Canada. I can speak my mind and talk about how shitty some things are. Like the thought police at the CRTC deciding what I do or don't see.

3)

You're joking right? You have to be...

Really? Name me ONE of these magical powerful nations. Just ONE. Many nations may not have strong militaries and might do well economically. But that's usually because their security is being guaranteed by someone else who HAS a strong military.

Japan and Germany don't have huge armies because all the countries in proximity to Japan FEAR a re-armed Japan and the Germans are just too damned guilty about WW2. The USSR was all about the big military presence, but couldn't convert that into any sustainable power over the long term because they didn't understand economic realities and were strangled by terrible inefficiency.

4) You mention "powerful interest groups" and the "elites" as the reason for the big military. Typical. I dismiss that as the usual paranoid nonsense. Next you'll tell me about the "zionist conspiracy" that's popular in lefty circles. Whatever. The truth is that the U.S. military exists as the global safety guarantee. Most nations are happy it's there so they have something or someone else to blame if things don't go their way.

Picture a world without the U.S. military. Happy flowers and patchouli-stinking peaceniks dancing in a wonderful peaceful world? Or the swastika flying overhead? Or the hammer and sickle? Love them or hate them, they are necessary to the world we have today, which is a damn sight better than if the results had gone the other way.

States are ranked using many different criteria for many different reasons and DING! for the one you're using guess who ranks highest? And that also depends how you define the term "power" as well. Which you didn't bother to do by the way. Because guess what? The answer will be the same no matter how you slice it.

And here's your presumed triumph. You make a whole bunch of unsubtantiated "points", claim victory and then turn it into a question mark about my professional competence.

Sorry, economic power is only one aspect of a nation's power. And most financial professionals know this.

And that is why you are wrong.

If I was wanting to speak to you only about this I would probably be wasting my time. Your cute little "presumably" shows what little regard you hold for people who hold my opinion.

But thanks for giving me a topic to write on.

Stop back with any other "revelations" you wish to grace me with...

Herbies

YOU ARE MANDRAKE


What herb are you?
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Yeah, that sounds like me.

Spineless

Growing up I always wondered about my Dad's choice of sports teams.

In the Stanley Cup playoffs, if the hated Montreal Canadiens (BOO!) defeated the beloved Toronto Maple Leafs (YAY!), in the next round he would side with those same hated Montreal Canadiens against whatever American team had come through the other playoff round.

I asked him why, if he hated Les Canadiens so much, he could turn around and root for them the very next round.

His answer "I'll always root for the Canadian team." No matter how much he hated them during the regular season.

"It's part of what makes this country great. Right now some poor bastard in Vancouver, who's endured a loser season from his team, is rooting for Montreal to win the cup again. Because he's Canadian. Because we're all Canadian and are proud of Canada."

Personally I wanted Boston to give me revenge on the Habs. I never got my wish. It was the time of Lafleur, Gainey, Robinson, and Dryden.

But this entry ain't about hockey.

-----

Don't get me wrong. I've always been proud to be a Canadian. But that pride has come under continual assault recently. Debate the merits of the Iraq war and Canada's decisions in that matter all you want, but this disgusts me as a Canadian and makes me feel real shame and anger.

In other words, if they told the truth about what was being done to one of OUR citizens and attempted to pressure the Saudis, then Sampson would've been "tortured more."

I'm sure that's a comfort to Mr. Sampson.

Imagine you're in a foreign prison and being tortured. Finally your countrymen come to see you in your cell. You tell them you've been tortured. You point out the bastards who've done it to you. The officials leave after making the required noises about helping you.

And nothing happens.

-----

Even the Canadian government's opposition towed the line and kept silent.

I'm sure the government just wanted this to go away. Foreign affairs had this incredible defense of its "soft diplomacy":

Well that's comforting. Thanks a bunch Mr. Doiron! That makes everything crystal clear!

Translation: We didn't lie ourselves. We just repeated the lies told by someone else without knowing whether or not these lies were technically untrue. Therefore you can't blame us for not knowing the truth of something that we were assured was definitely not happening, even though we suspected it might have been...

-----

I remember in university days the pride with which Canadian students would point out to foreigner students (ie. Americans) that Americans travelling in Europe would sew Canadian flags onto their backpacks because they were treated nicer abroad. "See! See! We're BETTER than you!" was the subtext of the conversations. "We're NICER than you! And the rest of the world LIKES US BETTER!"

Tell that to Mr. Sampson.

Saudis vetoed Sampson bid to renounce citizenship

"Canadian thought he would be treated better if he were considered a Briton."

And he's probably right, but in the end it really didn't make a difference because there were five other Britons that were also accused. Supposedly Prince Charles' intercession on behalf of the prisoners gained them all clemency. Thankfully for Sampson, Charles' efforts also helped him. If it's true.

Hey I don't know any more than you do, gentle reader...

Now imagine for a moment that those five other prisoners were all Canadians as well, and it was left up to Ottawa alone to gain their freedom...

And to my horror I realize one of the truisms of being Canadian: There is no way in HELL that we could make it on our own.

If we weren't right next door to the United States, could we handle our own defense? No.

If William Sampson were being held with five other Canadians all sentenced to die could Ottawa secure their release before all six were beheaded for the trumped up charges they were found guilty of? NO.

Could London or Washington?

-----

I keep thinking back to those University days.

In 1988 the 100-metre Olympic dash was going to prove who was the fastest man alive: Canadian Ben Johnson or American Carl Lewis. For those that don't remember it went down like this:

Johnson raced the race of his life and set a world record. Canadians nation-wide rejoiced with heads-swelled in Olympic pride. Much trash-talk ensued about who was who's daddy now - although I doubt that particular phrase was being used.

And then reality hit: Johnson tests positive for steroid use and has the medal stripped. Suddenly Canadian-sprinter Ben Johnson becomes Jamaican-born Canadian Ben Johnson, then Jamaican-born Ben Johnson. A nation turns its back on someone who was stupid enough to get caught doing what all of them were suspected of doing anyway.

A nation denies that Johnson is even Canadian.

-----

As for the government's attitude to Mr. Sampson:

Jeez, anger at a government that had let him rot in Saudi prison?

Sounds pretty un-"erratic" to me...

-----

I married an American Citizen. We've had two lovely daughters that could apply for dual citizenship.

If my daughters were travelling abroad and wound up in trouble, would I want them relying on a Maple Leaf on their backpacks protecting them? Or a passport with a Maple Leaf on it?

Or would one with an Eagle on it be more reassuring?

I think I know which way I'm leaning now...

So Bored...

So,

Here we are.

Yet another day of doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING AT WORK.

I understand it, and in a weird way I kind of appreciate it. You see, I'm leaving so they can't really give me anything meaty to sink my teeth into: a mega-project is SO out of the question. Anything that requires any DELVING might take me too long to complete so the only thing they throw at me are things a snotty second-year Commerce student could do:

• Correct the spreadsheet.
• Update report X with this month's content.
• Archive the budget files. You mean copy spreadsheets from the network to CD-R? Yes. It's very critical [yawn]
• Pick up my drycleaning. OK I'm kidding about this one. But it would be a welcome change of pace.

Five more days to Interview 3 with my potential new employer and I've never been a very patient man. I want to leave this company with good feelings and bridges unburned, but the temptation to make smart-ass remarks about everything and everyone is threatening to overwhelm me...

Must not make joke about CEO's bow-tie.
Must not make joke about uni-brow in the corner office.
Must not sing company slogans in sarcastic whiny voice.

Must resist temptation. Must not scratch the itch!

Beep!

[fuckin' backdoor security system!]

BEEP!

[grrrrr!]

BEEP!

[that's it. I'm going to the lunchroom!]

BEEP!

[you win. I'm leaving.]

BEEP!

[I SAID YOU WIN!]

BEEP!

[ARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!]

Relocated! And it feels soooo GOOD!

Actually no, it doesn't. But I couldn't come up with any clever song that expressed disdain for the situation.

-----

So Kraut Corp. (current) has in its infinite wisdom decided to relocate me to the cubicle nearest the back door of the office. Strange this is, and for many reasons:

1. If they'd waited three more weeks they could've taken my stuff and relocated me outside the back door and stopped paying me, like they will in three weeks time.
2. It took a total of 15 minutes to move my trusty laptop, phone, some binders and miscellaneous office supplies. A sad judgement on my contribution to the firm.
3. I'm now right next to the door. It makes a stupid [beep] noise everytime someone swipes their security pass to enter or exit. There is no damnable mute button in sight.
4. People entering or exiting, upon seeing the handy velcro-nameplate now hanging from the cubicle, feel the insufferable need to stop and engage in vacuous "chit-chat" with me, most of time not knowing who I am or what function I perform(ed) with the company. I have lost my "lost sanctuary" buried deep within the dead-end corridors where non-Finance types fear to tread...
5. I now have to listen to the inevitable "small talk" that co-workers exchange upon meeting each other near the door...My own personal hell

Three more weeks. Three more weeks. Three more weeks.

Interview 2 Result

There will be an interview 3 with the head-honcho CFO of the organization next week.

They like me. They REALLY REALLY like me... (shamelessly stolen from Sally Field. Still the best Oscar acceptance ever!)

Stabby Stabby!

Hilarious to see the questioning, slightly fearful look in co-workers' eyes as they see me carve up an apple with my trusty fruit-knife.

They must fear I'm disgruntled or something.

Or pissed at the company.

Or society in general.

Maybe I'm dangerous...

-----

"Relax, it's a fruit-knife!"

Co-workers visibly relax.

"I mean there are plenty of ways for me to get revenge if I want and I don't have to be anywhere near here..."

Co-workers visibly tense up.

"Just kidding."

Co-workers visibly relax.

[Staring at my hands] "You ever imagine you have claws?" [strikes at the air with my claw-hands]

Co-workers visibly tense up.

Interview 2 Debrief

Silly me! I forgot to tell you about Friday's second interview:

2:45pm Northeastern Brampton, Ontario, Canada (Bramalea Industrial Park for those that know the area. The Kraut walks through the doors of the head office of a large (by $$ sales) and small (by headcount) import/export firm...

I'm 15 minutes early. A good number that. Not so early that you appear desperate for the job, but early enought that you've shown that you've actually planned out how to get to the interview with time to spare. Thoughtful, not desperate. I wait in the lobby, listening in on flirty banter between the burly Fed-Ex guy and the receptionist, who really seems to dig the guy. I tell the receptionist who I am, why I'm there and who I'm to see. She punches some numbers on her panel...I am announced.

The foyer is small, yet busy, done in tasteful non-showy colours. I don't know why but it kind of reminds me of a modern show kitchen: blacks and whites and marble counter-tops. Efficient. Profitable. It looks on to the parking lot where cars are coming and going with a lot more frequency than most of the industrial parks I've seen.

Out comes my maybe future boss...

The one thing I remember most is her talking style. She spoke like Kathy Griffin from Suddenly Susan (yeah I caught a few episodes: getting over a Brooke Shields Blue Lagoon crush takes some doing let me tell you...)

Blather blather blather: The woman spoke a mile a minute in a perverse valley girl drawl that made it hard for me to peg her intelligence level. I think this was intentional: it certainly gave me pause to figure out exactly who I was dealing with.

Weird interview: normally I expect to talk 70% of the time, but she wanted to do all the talking. I decided to relax and let her drive the process.

Anyways, I got the scoop on the job and company, made the right noises about my communication skills and my "take charge" attitude and left with a soft commitment about interview 3, with the CFO, when he gets back from vacation after a week, with the same platitudes about "other candidates" "get back to the headhunter with feedback" (both phrases uttered with total lack of conviction: I am the only current candidate that hasn't been deep-sixed outta there...)

Overall, I came away positive about the company and my potential future boss seemed OK (if a bit flighty) so if they offer, I will accept.

In the meantime though, the search continues.

Just in case.

Big Surprise

You are Lust.

Every part of you screams "Do me now!"
You exude sexuality and while others sometimes
view you as a slut, you see yourself as only
giving into your base desires.


What Emotion Are You?
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Interview 2

As predicted the interview with the headhunter went well.

The company wants to meet me at 3pm today. I'll be leaving work in North York at 12 noon to go home, eat, shower, shave, put on my suit and check out the drive from home to Brampton, where the office of the Interviewer is located.

-----

Helpful hints from the headhunter:

• Avoid yes or no answers, but don't talk too much.
• Be confident, but not so confident that I come off as cocky
• Avoid long examples, but explain my experiences completely.

?????

As I always have, I'll play the room by ear. This is the meeting with the divisional controller (my potential new boss) and the Chief Financial Officer (my potential bosses' boss.) If a decision will be made it will be made here.

Any interview after this one will be dotting i's and crossing t's.

Until later this evening...

Geek I am...

It's amazing what you can do with the right toys...

Because of my snazzy new D-link wi-fi card I'm actually writing this entry from my handheld HP IPAQ while lounging in my easy chair.

Yet another thing that will conspire to keep me sitting on my fat butt growing in girth.

The past lives in us (even if we don't like it...)

Thanks to a comment by Hariolf today I thought I'd write about something my wife and I talk about quite frequently. We are both first-generation born-in-North America children-of-immigrants; in my case mostly German, in my wife's case mostly Italian.

What we've noticed is that the Europeans that came to North America after the war seem to be preserving the traditions and mindsets (for good and bad) that they grew up with. So in my case, dealing with the older generations of German relatives that crossed the Atlantic after World War II is like dealing with Germans of the 1930's - National Socialist sympathies included. Whereas when I speak to modern Germans from Germany they are very different than my relatives: forward-thinking, pacifist, to a large degree socialist, with a true regret and shame for the events of the Holocaust.

Trying to get many North American Germans to even ADMIT there was a holocaust without pulling out any fingernails was a rare occurence, and when they do they dis-associate themselves from the events because they happened "so long ago" and were acts committed by "others."

For Germans from Germany however, it seems the war is a wound that has never healed properly.

-----

My wife has had similar experiences, but she points to the food. An Italian-American will usually think of tomato sauce as the ultimate expression of Italian cuisine. From what my wife has seen of modern Italian cuisine from Italy (unlike most 1st generation immigrants Rue actually READS the mother tongue) it has grown into something that has a lot in common with Asian cuisine in the way of ingredients and techniques.

In the second season of The Sopranos the supposedly very-Italian Paulie Walnuts finds himself in a bit of culture shock when during a trip to Naples he feels no connection to the place, the people, or the cuisine. The "real" Italians make fun of him when he sends back his ink-black pasta so that they can put "gravy" [tomato sauce] on it: "And you thought the Germans were barbarians!"

I felt sorry for Paulie, and I've felt the same way around "real" Germans.

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It's also about attitude as well. In the late 80's, all of the old German men in the neighbourhood were telling my Dad that he was causing trouble for them because [shock and horror!] he was ALLOWING my mother to drive and have her own money: "Kinder, Kirche und Küche!" was all women were good for according to these old geezers. Translation: Children, Church and Kitchen, which, I'm told, was the prevailing attitude before the war.

My dad told them to go to hell.

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If there are any immigrant's kids reading this could you tell me if this is generally so with you as well? Do the original traditions get "freeze-dried" once you leave the homeland? Culture shock when you visit the "old country?"

I mean honestly, I had to stop my Grandmother from buying me lederhosen. She honestly thought that I'd look "cool" in them.

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Stop laughing Rue.

Burning

Growing up in British Columbia, every summer brought on the inevitable forest fire season. I remember watching the news, seeing the flames but it all seemed so remote, like it was happening somewhere else; that was until the Okanagan Valley was choked with smoke one summer in the 80's from blazes hundreds of kilometres away.

Because of that dry tinder-box weather that I remember and envy right now as I sweat and sweat on my way to work, B.C.'s interior was always threatening to explode into flames.

Now, in the sweltering humid mosquito pit that is the Greater Toronto Area I can only watch and remember as it happens yet again.

Shit.

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The only fire I saw up close was the Mount Boucherie fire in the early 90's.

The whole mountain was engulfed in smoke and you could see each individual tree go up in flames as the fire spread. I remember having an uncharitable thought about the little bastards who started that fire while playing with matches and hoping that someone their own age would give them a little "schoolyard justice."

I know that the fires have to be really bad this time out to have made the daily news here in the Centre of the Universe (Canada's version, at least) for the last week or so.

I wish I could trade some of our weather for theirs: It would do us both some good.

Interview Debrief

Ever go to an interview where the outcome was pre-determined?

Sure we all have. Usually that predetermined outcome is us being metaphorically shown the door before we even shake hands with the interviewer.

As a happy change of pace, I had one of the other kind of interviews today: the ones where you know (KNOW!) that there will be a second interview -- if you can avoid picking your nose or screaming random profanities you will get to the second interview...

Now all I gotta do is get ahold of that slippery headhunter to set a time to meet her client.

She was done with me in 30 minutes...

[will not jinx it by making predictions will not jinx it by making predictions will not jinx it by making predictions will not jinx it by making predictions will not jinx it by making predictions will not jinx it by making predictions will not jinx it by making predictions...]

Interview

Got an interview Tuesday at 10:30 am.

Headhunter that phoned me hit on three specific things in my resume that would make me perfect for this job...

If this works out I'll definitely advocate making resumes available for public viewing on job sites (I didn't before because too many insurance companies were phoning me looking for potential pitchmen.)

Wish me luck!

Much Ado about Nothing

"The state has no business in the bedrooms of the nation."
-- Pierre Elliott Trudeau

And in my opinion, neither does the Catholic Church.

This whole thing is one stupid collossal waste of time...

If you are Catholic, but choose to be gay, you are rejecting Catholicism, because Rome makes the rules. You won't convince them that your homosexuality is a good thing and something to be celebrated. Trying to get them to OK your union is silly, kind of like getting homophobic parents to accept your "lover" as family. You will have to decide the "morality" of your own behaviour because love and acceptance from Rome ain't gonna happen.

The church is trying to flex its muscles over democratically-elected (OK I'm stretching that here in the Liberal-party-fiefdom of Canada) politicians by threatening them with hell-fire and damnation. This is EXACTLY why seperation of church and state is a GOOD thing: so that I don't have to deal with stupid intrusions into my life by fairy-tale religious ceremonies that have nothing to do with me.

And to all the nutbars out there that think discipline started to crumble in public schools when they took out the Lords Prayer: you're so wrong. Discipline crumbled when it was hammered home that teachers were powerless to enforce any kind of discipline (physical or emotional) on students because the indulgent whiny parents would show up screaming "not MY Johnny!!" when confronted with what idiots their kids were being. Johnny got it in his mind that teachers were useless and decided to treat them as such. The Lord's Prayer had nothing to do with anything.

But I ramble and digress (but hey, it's my blog! Ahahahahaha!)

Currently the situation is such a mess, much akin to what's coming down the pipe with the Marijuana laws in Canada.

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I have no problem whatsoever with gays. They can do whatever they want. But let's talk practicalities here...

Situation 1: A gay couple from NY state gets married in Ontario and then returns home. Does NY state recognize the marriage? No. Are they legally married in NY? No. Did their marriage mean anything legally in their home country? No.

Situation 2: A gay married couple decides they can't stand each other anymore and want to divorce. Ontario has no legislation for divorce because everything's written for a man and a woman. It's going to take a long time before any same-sex couple can get a legal divorce in Canada.

Oh, you say, by the time that rolls around there will be legislation: if it's anything like current legislation, there's a one year residency requirement for Divorce...Woops. Nothing like being forced to live somewhere for a full year for legal stupidities if you come from out of province...

Not to mention issues of child support, alimony custody etc. If there is equality then there should be TRUE equality. Gay couples will have to deal with all the SHIT the rest of us do.

Which takes away what I personally LIKE about same-sex unions (aside from the benefits of shared wardrobes...)

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Gay marriage is coming. Will that force me to "re-evaluate" my marriage? No. Is this the "death" of traditional marriage? No. People will do what they want. Marriage should be a deeply personal committment on the part of the participants. If it is, gender mix shouldn't matter.

What's bugging me about this is:

1) The church is using it's trusty "burn in hell" threats to attempt to influence democratic process. There are many Catholic politicians who may be swayed to vote their beliefs, rather than their constituents' wishes.

2) The idiot governments in Canada (provincial and federal) are pushing a political agenda without preparing proper legislation so they can be seen as "progressive." How many readers have had a shitty divorce? Well imagine that the rules governing your divorce were being written on the fly by politicians looking for a legacy...Imagine how long and painful your divorce would be then. This is irresponsible, but of course they have no opposition and can do what they want.

3) Canada has forced Dubya to pay attention to this issue. While I've been a supporter of Dubya's team (Powell, Cheney et al.) when it comes to making tough decisions in Iraq and Afghanistan, I've never thought him to be a bright shining light when it comes to progressive domestic policies...Shining Dubya's flashlight on this particular issue can hardly do American gays any good...

In the end, the world won't end. But there are many other problems that Canada's government should be paying attention to besides this:

• like the softwood lumber problem in B.C.
• like the economic effects of SARs in Toronto...
• like the problem of the beef ban due to mad-cow disease...

It's not like this government has nothing to do.

Then again, ancient Rome used distractions to keep the public busy so that its true agendas could be pushed through with little public debate. Of course the Liberal party agenda could be summed up as:

• Do as little as possible.
• Collect paycheques.
• Get legacy for boss who has Trudeau-inferiority complex.
• Get re-elected.